don’t think there’s anything premature about it, Abby.” He crossed back to her, ready to sit and attempt to make his case when she stood, meeting him eye to eye.
Or as close as she could get to eye to eye.
Even with heels, her tall frame didn’t match his own six foot two.
“I’m assessing your capabilities.”
“Like hell you are.” Campbell knew he had a competitive streak to rival an Olympic athlete’s, but her words had him seeing red. Add on the image of her scared and in danger from some psycho and his emotions were far more raw than he’d have expected. “I can run circles around any problem you have. And for the record—” he leaned forward, unable to keep the disgust from his tone “—I’m not here to try out.”
Chapter 2
Abby had heard the term “baiting the bear in his den” before—had even experienced it from time to time in difficult negotiations—but the tension that radiated from Campbell gave new meaning to the old adage.
With the focus she’d honed through years of boardroom negotiation, she pressed on and avoided thinking about how interesting it was to stare up into his eyes. “As I told Kensington, I’ve no doubt you’re good, but the team I have in place includes some of the brightest minds in the world.”
“And what if the problem is coming from within your organization? From one of those bright minds?”
“I’m well aware that’s a possibility, but it still doesn’t mean you’re the solution to my problem.”
She saw the light of battle leap into his eyes. “I don’t think you’ve got a better option.”
“There are always options.”
“Actually, darling, I think you’re out of them.”
The “darling” had her snapping her mouth closed before she pressed on with the first words that popped into her mind. “I thought you were the mild-mannered one.”
Although the sentiment wasn’t all that polite, Abby was surprised by the hard bark of laughter that followed his raised eyebrows. “You’ve met my brother, I take it?”
“A few times.”
“Liam’s honed the dark and brooding routine to a perfect fit.”
Abby thought about the large, imposing man who held a James Bond sort of sexiness to his demeanor and couldn’t quite shake the impression that Campbell had been sorely underestimated if they gave his brother more credit. “You’re no slouch. I’ve been in business long enough to know mild-mannered can be a rather effective strategy.”
His smile was back but it bore the distinct notes of family baggage and sibling rivalry. “I’m well aware I have to work a bit harder.”
As an only child, she was endlessly fascinated by family dynamics and the ways siblings related to and communicated with each other. Support and resentment, love and frustration and always—always—a fierce sense of devotion.
If she weren’t mistaken, Campbell’s responses about Liam held a lifetime of feelings toward his brother, from genuine affection to a dose of competition with a small dash of big brother hero worship on the side.
She dropped back into her seat, satisfied when he followed suit. Perhaps the clouds of battle had blown over.
With a firm voice, she tried once again to make her point. She’d always found that calm voice soothed a rowdy business meeting or a loud press conference, but, strangely enough, it hadn’t been all that effective in soothing her nerves of late.
“My take away from my conversation with Kensington was that you’d come over here and evaluate my situation.”
“Consider yourself evaluated.”
His words—were they intentional?—had her fumbling briefly to stay on track. Perhaps she’d been too hasty in thinking the man lagged behind his brother. Where their approaches may be different, both men had a ready sort of charm that made a woman well aware she was being watched.
“Kensington leaped to the plane tickets?”
“Yes.”
“I’m not sure why.”
“I’d trust her instincts.”
Abby tried a new tactic, willing the man to see reason. “Look. I’ve known your sister a long time. She’s just being overprotective of an old friend.”
“Since she has the irritating habit of never being wrong, I’d get on board with those instincts.”
“Mine aren’t too shabby, either.” The quiet voice inside that had been questioning those instincts rose up to argue, dancing through the back of her mind on swift feet.
Why was she resisting the help?
Especially when it came from someone who was capable of understanding her business at its most basic level.
“I’m sure they’re not. Which is why I can already see you relenting and agreeing to bring me on this project.”
Abby held back the sigh, unwilling to give up any more ground than necessary, even as she admitted he was in the right. “Okay. Let’s assume I’m in agreement with your capabilities. How do you propose to deal with this...situation? Kensington said she’d leave specifics up to you.”
“I spent some time assessing your systems.”
She glanced at the slim, high-tech tablet in his hands, a match for her own. “When?”
“During the press conference. Your firewalls are good.”
“You tried to hack into my system during the press conference?”
“Yes.”
His expression was so bland—so devoid of any bit of remorse—she had to take a quick breath. “Why the hell did you do that?”
“Why not? I’m here to find problems, aren’t I?”
“Yes, but...” She felt herself sputtering to a halt. “You shouldn’t do that.”
“Do you think your competition is resting?”
“No.”
“So I wanted to see what we’re up against.” He lifted the tablet with a slight wave. “Your security is good.”
“Oh, thank you.”
He tapped the screen of his device without looking up. “I heard those delightful overtones of sarcasm and snark.”
“I meant you to.”
He handed her the tablet and Abby was struck by the heat of his body that still warmed the metal frame. The brief moment of intimacy ran a line of shivers down her spine
